I was looking forward to Obama's speech last night and even contemplated staying up for it. After watching the speech this morning, I'm glad I didn't. I don't know if I had too high of expectations or what. I was just wanting someone (anyone, really) to inspire and challenge our country collectively. I guess I was hoping Obama would try to appeal to both sides and bridge the party differences and even possibly seal the deal for me. But, as I ate my bowl of Frosties (Frosted Flakes for you Americans) I felt nothing. In fact, his attacks and digs against Bush and Republicans actually frustrated me more than the level of sogginess of my Frosties after a 15 minute speech. Granted, McCain hasn't provided much inspiration either... UNTIL today. I never really gave it much thought so I'm not sure why I was excitedly shocked that McCain picked a woman as his running mate. It makes sense, but I figured he would follow the political safe road and pick a fellow Washington bureacrat, boy was I wrong.

Alright, so, let me give you the laundry list of qaulifications of why I'm a fan of Sarah Palin:

1. She's pretty HOT

And that's all I got...

Ok I'm joking. But you have to admit, she gives a really good first impression.

Needless to say, I'm still no closer to deciding how I'm going to vote... Most people that know me know I'm super conservative, but being in Europe has shown me that not everything is black or white (or in this case red or blue.) The order of "red or blue" in the previous sentence does not apply respectively to "black or white" so get over yourself if you took it that far. In fact, I avoid political conversations at all costs over here, mostly because only one side of the story is shown in the news. Events, situations, or stories are all portrayed with such subjective slants that it taints any objective conversation anyone can have with a Belgian. I don't fault the Belgians for having such disdain for certain aspects of American life, it's all they know. But I do fault the media for only putting out one very slanted side of the story. I'm not just saying this becuase it happens to be the liberal slant, I think I would feel the same way if was only the conservative slant shown. Rather than complain about the lack of objectivism or neutrality in the media, I think it would be more beneficial and possibly even more entertaining if the subjectivism continued but both sides were shown. It would be up to the individual to decide, with the truth being somewhere in the middle. Now, yes I know the possible repricussions that could occur if man were left to his own intellectual devices, and so did our founding fathers, because that is exactly why we have the electoral college. If too many people begin to think for themselves and begin to vote according to their principles and convictions rather than party affiliations or the "hotness" of a candidate, the "leaders" and "priviledged" of our country would be in danger of losing their jobs. Alright, I know that's a bit harsh, but I'm just fed up with politics and the "talk" of change. My cousin was just here last week and we spoke a little about politics and she did mention something that I think is worth repeating. She said "I'm a thinker, not a Republican or Democrat or even Independent." And I completely agree. My challenge to you and mainly myself, is to be a thinker. I don't care who you vote for, I only care if you can tell me why you voted for who you did or even what the key issues were for you in your decision. I'll even accept "Because she's hot." I think that's better than "Because she's Republican." We can even discuss the pros and cons of having an attractive person represent and lead our country. Case in point: recently elected mayor of London, Boris Johnson. (picture below)... Could he be a suitable leader of a country or even an important international city? Forget about his merits and credibility as a person, don't lose focus, judge only on appearance... haha jk. But seriously!

Ok, enough of my political rant. If you've made it this far, thank you for reading. If you don't agree with anything I said, then Katie made me say it. JK. But she did encourage me to make a special appearance on the blog so it's ultimately her fault if I've bored you to death.

Hope all is well and thank you to everyone that has supported us (especially with fun filled care packages). See you in October!

Stephen

6
comments:

Very thoughtful insights. Glad to see you taking such interest. I would add one more profile to your Thinker, Democrat, and Republican. VOTER It means nothing unless someone actually cast the vote. Talking and thinking are great, but I would prefer that everyone votes.

Dad, you are absolutely right! Katie and I have already filled our absentee registration cards and are awaiting our ballots. For those of you outside the US, you can register for an absentee ballot at www.fvap.gov

Well all I can say is that it's not enough to states anothers faliures nor ask for change if we can't say what it is we want to change. It's never easy to vote for merely one leader as each one at any given point will give good and bad arguements! From a European point of view whether you think it's objective or not, Bush has upset alot of people due to his decision to over step the UN! This has done nothing for the way Americans are see overseas. However Stephen I will say this, in the end you don't vote for foriegn polices or how you are viewed in another persons country but you vote for the one who will have the greatest impact on your country!So dears when you vote don't be democrat or repulican but be objective, vote for the one that can convince you of actual reachable goals and not empty promises but what ever you decide VOTE otherwise you will have failed to use what is such a privalege in our FREE WORLD! Good luckAva

Well, so glad to see that you are staying abreast of what is happening here given the fact that you are living so far away and it would be so easy to become apathetic and jaded with all the rehetoric going on during this process. I must admit, that I too, am somewhat underwhelmed by either candidate at this time. I like to consider myself and independent thinker also, and do not tie myself to either party affliation, though I must admit I lean more to the conservative republican view on most issues. However, I feel the Bush administration (for which I voted) has failed miserably on more than one account. I agree with Ava's comment that Bush's decision to ignore the UN's position on Iran probably set us back decades in the world's view of us. However, their perception of us, in my humble opinion, is one of the least of the issues at stake in this election. Don't get me wrong, I believe our next president needs to mend alot of fences with world leaders to undo some of Bush's errors. However, I am more concerned about the issues here affecting the everyday lives of ordinary citizens.....such as the economy, rising gas prices and the need to find viable fuel alternatives, rising health care costs and possible tax reform. I have been drawn to the charismatic speeches of Obama and his talk of change. He has even laid out specifics,but what he has failed to do is explain how he intends to FUND all these "improvements". On the other hand, McCain talks of change, but hasn't given any details, and seems to concentrate more on his opposing candidate than on substance.

My hope is that in the next few weeks, more specifics and details will be outlined by both parties and a clearer picture will emerge. At this point,in my mind......it is the lesser of two evils..... and I am not sure which is which. One way or the other I WILL cast a vote and exercise a right that many have given their lives so that we can make a choice.

PS. Your comment on Palin being a "hotie".....was done tongue in cheek I know, but........(couldn't resist.......I'm still your mom....love you!)

I can honestly say when I read the various comments I can clearly see that even though we think we are worlds apart at the end of it all we seem to want the same things. Better services, cheaper fuel prices etc. I am British living in Belgium and Stephen has probably told you that even though we had a democatic election here in Belgium we currently face a stalemate in our government. So you see folks we all have the same problems! I hope who ever it is will make really changes for the American people! Good luck

Stephen, Katie, Knox, Gracie, and Bella

We've returned from Europe and are now starting our next adventure...parenting! Stephen and I welcomed sweet Knox on April 27th. Follow along as we walk into unchartered territory...there's sure to be plenty of laughs and awkward moments!